PART II.] 



ALPINE FLOWERS FOR GARDENS 



289 



the bosses which are present in the 

 Primrose and Cowslip. It is found in 

 woods and meadows on clayey soils in the 

 eastern counties of England, particularly 

 in Essex, Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire. 



Primula palinuri (Large-Leaved Prim- 

 rose}. This is distinct from other culti- 

 vated Primroses, inasmuch as it seems to 

 grow all to leaf and stem, whereas many of 

 the other kinds often hide their leaves 

 with flowers. In April the yellow flowers 

 appear in a bunch at the top of a powdery 

 stem, emit a cowslip-like perfume, and are 

 pretty, though they rarely fulfil the 

 promise of the vigorous-looking plant. 

 I have seen it flourish in rich light soil as 

 a border-plant in various parts of these 

 islands, and established plants are easily 

 increased by division. Southern Italy. 



P. purpurea (Purple Primrose}. A 

 handsome Primrose, from elevations of 

 12,000 feet or more on the Himalayas, 

 and allied to P. denticulata, though finer ; 

 the flowers, of an exquisite purple, are 

 larger, in heads about 3 inches across. 

 Sheltered and warm positions, but not 

 very shady, will best suit it, the soil being 

 a light deep sandy loam and decomposed, 

 leaf -mould. I have never seen it thrive 

 so well as when planted in nooks at the 

 base of rocks which sheltered it, where it 

 enjoyed more heat than if exposed. 



P. Scotica (Scotch Birds-Eye Primrose}. 

 This, one of the most lovely of its family, 

 is a near ally of the Bird's- Eye Primrose. 

 Its rich purple flowers, with large yellowish 

 eye, open in the end of April, supported on 

 stems from ^ an inch to 1 inch high, 

 growing an inch or two taller as the season 

 advances. It is said by some botanists 

 to be simply a variety of the Bird's-Eye 

 Primrose, but the seedlings show no 

 tendency to approach the larger and 

 looser P. farinosa, and Mr Boswell Syme, 

 who has carefully observed the living 

 plant both in a wild state and cultivated 

 in his own garden, declares it to be 

 "perfectly distinct." The leaves are 

 powdery on the under side, broadest near 

 the middle, shorter, and less indented than 

 those of P. farinosa, which are broadest 

 near the end ; and the whole plant is 

 about large enough to associate with a 

 dwarf moss or lichen. A native of the 



counties of Sutherland and Caithness, 

 and of the Orkney Isles, growing in damp 

 pastures. The best place for it is on some 

 spot where it would have perfect drainage, 

 and not be injured by strong - growing 

 plants shading it. The soil should be a 

 friable loam, mixed with sandy peat or a 

 little cocoa-fibre, and made firm ; a few 

 pieces of broken porous rock should be 

 placed firmly in the ground around it, 

 so as to show half their size above the 

 surface, prevent evaporation, and also act 

 as a guard to the little plant. If a coating 

 of dwarf moss is spread over the earth 

 after a time, I should not remove it, be- 

 lieving the plant to enjoy such a carpet. 

 Although so small, it is, when in health, 

 vigorous, and seeds freely, the self-sown 

 seedlings having often formed with me 

 good plants on the mossy surface of the 

 ground. I have grown it in the open air 

 near London ; but, as a rule, it is best for 

 all who do not try it in a pure atmosphere 

 to grow it in well-drained pots or pans, 

 using the same kind of soil, and protecting 

 the plants in a cool shallow frame in 

 winter, placing the pots out of doors in 

 summer, plunged in coal-ashes or sand. 

 In all cases the plant should be abundantly 

 watered in dry weather. Easily pro- 

 pagated by seeds, which should be sown 

 soon after they are ripe in shallow pans of 

 sandy peat or fibrous loam mixed with 

 cocoa-fibre, and placed in an open pit or 

 shallow cold frame. 



Primula sikkimensis (Sikkim Cowslip}. 

 One of the most remarkable of Primroses; 

 when well grown, it throws up strong 

 flower-stems from 15 inches to 2 feet high, 

 bearing many bell-shaped, pale -yellow 

 flowers, without a spot of any other colour, 

 the pedicel mealy, the blooms of an agree- 

 able perfume. Some of the stems bear a 

 head of more than five dozen buds and 

 flowers, and each flower is nearly 1 inch 

 long and more than inch across. It is 

 hardy, and loves deep well- drained and 

 moist ground ; near water, or in deep 

 boggy places, suit it best ; begins to flower 

 in May, and remains in flower for many 

 weeks. It is said to be the pride of all 

 the Primroses of the mountains of India, 

 inhabiting wet boggy localities, at eleva- 

 tions of from 12,000 to 17,000 feet, and 



